Ebe Stignani and Anita Cerquetti should have made it to the Met
Subtlety is for cowards, say the blazing Anita Cerquetti and the blaring Ebe Stignani.
Arturo Toscanini
49 pieces since 2007 — at 2 companies, most often at Metropolitan Opera.
49
pieces
2
companies
20
years
By company
The 1946 La traviata is so overrated
For all his undeniable precision and discipline, I still find Toscanini’s tempi rushed and unyielding and his lack of rubato a chilly turnoff.
By Peter Russell
194 comments
The emperor’s new groove
A new recording of Boito‘s Nerone from Cagliari shows off an epic opera with fire and flamboyance
My soul is eager for this kind of pain
Ross Wassermann tracks the development of “Che farò senza Euridice?” — and “J’ai perdu mon Eurydice” — for this month’s Perspectives on an Aria
Change my mind about the Toscanini Bohème
It’s like making love with someone whose rap never ceases—and includes “helpful suggestions” about how you can be improving your game.
By Peter Russell
79 comments
Wishin’ and hopin’ and thinkin’ and prayin’
Eli Jacobson inaugurates parterre box’s new “Perspectives on the Aria” feature with a deep dive into Leonore’s “Abscheulicher!” from Beethoven’s Fidelio which returns to the Metropolitan Opera tomorrow with the Met’s current dramatic soprano star Lise Davidsen as Leonore.
Unnecessary performance problems
Patrick Mack on the iconic Ethan Mordden‘s career and his first book on opera in 30 years – and it appears that time has mostly stopped in the Mordden manse.
Thoughts on Il trovatore: the opera
When asked to express some “thoughts” here about Verdi’s Il trovatore, my immediate thought was “hmm… not a lot to think about there.”
The servant of two last names
“In over nine years you’ve never posted an opera by Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari,” no one has ever said.
Four frightened people
As an opera fanatic who was baptized by the blood of Leontyne Price, the Messa da Requiem by Giuseppe Verdi appeared on my radar fairly soon after I started delving into the operatic canon.
Decadent genealogies
Arnold Schoenberg’s Gurrelieder and Giacomo Puccini’s Turandot are, in their different ways, the final decadent flowering of a musical tradition at its twilight.
Thoughts on La Forza del destino: recordings
As said at the beginning, I implied I’d rather see Don Carlo(s) and listen to Forza.
Thoughts on La Forza del destino: versions
Following the composition of Un ballo in maschera, Verdi had gone into a self-imposed retirement, at least musically; he had not composed a note in four years.
Hear the trumpets sound!
Frankly I thought Sondra Radvanovsky had reached her pinnacle with her Norma but I was apparently mistaken. I’m happy to say her Turandot is completely next-level.
Making the trivial triumphant
On this day in 1978, the Metropolitan Opera presented a new production of Donizetti’s La favorita.
A delicate but defined charm
On this day in 1937 soprano Bidu Sayão made her Metropolitan Opera debut as Manon.
A whole can of worms
On this day in 1979 the Metropolitan Opera presented a new production of Verdi’s Don Carlo.
Devil in disguise
On this day in 1953 the Metropolitan Opera opened its season with a new production of Gounod’s Faust.
Headless “Girl” in a topless bar
Today’s listener has heard the scores of the classic Westerns that borrowed from Puccini (and Wagner!) to create the sound of the myth of the West.
Gold dust Minnie
Giacomo Puccini’s La fanciulla del West may have its detractors (Stravinsky referred to it as a “horse-opera’) but you will not find me among them.
Undead of the night
For those pining for Puccini with the Met out of commission. Trove Thursday steps up with the composer’s brief first opera Le Villi with Krassimira Stoyanova, José Cura and Franz Grundheber, led by Simone Young.
Drag me to hell
My first-ever Met Sunday opera brought the welcome return of Gluck’s sublime Orfeo ed Euridice in an enchanting afternoon that combined elegant conducting, joyous dancing and Jamie Barton’s extraordinary hero.
“I am finding my way as I go”
The musical director of the Opera Royal de Wallonie at Liege is currently experiencing the early phase of a promising international career in music.
The farce of destiny
The chaos is nonstop, the comedy is broad and physical, and requires a large ensemble of singers who can execute Rossinian polysyllabic patter while taking pratfalls.